Phishing, Phishing, and More Phishing
According to a recent report, business email phishing attacks increased a whopping 476% year-over-year and credential phishing attempts quadrupled quarter-over-quarter. Even worse is that these attacks are having huge success and costing companies a lot of money. Companies will employ various electronic safeguards, but you are the most important line of defense, so THINK BEFORE YOU CLICK!
Follow these tips to protect yourself and your company:
If prompted for email or network credentials, be highly suspicious.
If linked to a website, it may ask you to enter your email or network credentials. This is a huge red flag. You need to guard these credentials over all else, so be very wary if prompted to enter them.
Do not click on random links in emails.
Hover over links to see where the link is directing you. Also, be cognizant that the link could go to what “looks” like a legitimate website.
Do not open attachments.
These files could have viruses or could send you to a malicious site.
Do not trust the sender’s name or email address.
These can be easily spoofed by making it appear that it is coming from a legitimate user. When in doubt, go directly to the source to confirm a request rather than clicking a potentially dangerous link or taking other action.
Never give out personal information.
This information should rarely be provided on pages reached from links included in emails … especially unsolicited emails.
Be wary of popup windows.
Popups often masquerade as originating from legitimate companies. If you see one of these questionable popups, do not click “Cancel”. Click the X in the upper right-hand corner.
Stay educated.
Remember to read this blog on a monthly basis and review any other tips that you may come across.